» OVERVIEW
NonprofitRFPExchange can connect you with the things your organization needs – goods and services, employees and volunteers, or funding sources. You register once, post as many listings of what you need as you like, and let us do the work contacting those who can provide what you need. Using this free service, you can reach more qualified bidders to secure maximum value for your nonprofit dollars, expand your pool of employee applicants and volunteers, and connect with funding sources you might not have otherwise sought out.
» STEP-BY-STEP
When you first enter the site and click anywhere in the NONPROFIT quadrant, you are taken to the Nonprofit Home Page. From here you can register and login.REGISTER
Click on the word “Register” at the bottom of the LOGIN box. A screen asking for Basic Information appears. Fill in your Email Address and verify it. Then create a Password and verify it. Next, choose an Account Type. This is very important and affects what you will be asked on the next screen, in which section of the site your home page will be and what options you have using this site. ONLY NONPROFITS CAN POST RFPS. Click “Next” to continue.The next screen is the User Profile form where you fill in information about you, as the contact person, and your nonprofit organization. Finally, please tell us how you heard about this site. Click “Next” to continue.
You will see a welcome screen and when you are logged in you can access all the tabs across the top. Whenever you log in from now on, you will first see this welcome and information page until you post an RFP. From that point forward, when you log in, a list of the RFPs you have posted will appear as your ‘home’ page. This is also the same list as will appear when you click on the ‘Manage RFPs’ tab.
Let’s review each of the tabs across the top.
POST RFPs
This tab brings up a form which will create a unique RFP which we call a ‘listing’ or just ‘RFP’. Search results display the deadline, industry, location, budget, title, and summary. When an RFP is chosen and downloaded by interested parties, RFPs also display complete contact and organization information as well as the full RFP. How you fill out the Post an RFP Form will determine who sees it.TYPE OF RFP - The first piece of information required on the “Post an RFP” form is what Type of RFP you want to post. The type of RFP determines what information you will need to post, what category lists will be available, and who will be able to search for it when it’s posted. The RFP itself can be a .pdf file, which you upload OR you can type (or cut and paste) text into the online form. If you choose to create the text for the RFP online, we will create the .pdf file for you. All RFPs are .pdf files when they are downloaded. Having the RFP be a .pdf file ensures that all those who download your RFP are getting the same information and that it cannot be altered.
The types of RFPs you can choose from are:
• Post an RFP for goods or services
An RFP for goods or services can only be viewed by Businesses. Businesses can actively search for RFPs or if they register, they can receive email alerts about newly posted RFPs. Search results and email alerts only show them the title and summary of posted RFPs. When you post the RFP, you must not use your organization’s name or contact information in the title or summary. The entire RFP and all contact information become available to the business when they pay small single download fee or if they have a subscription. This insures that your RFP is only being received by businesses giving serious consideration to bidding.
• Post an RFP for an employee or volunteer
An RFP for an employee or volunteer can only be viewed by Job Seekers. When you post an RFP for an employee, you will be asked what type of position it is that is available, the Hours (full-time, part-time, or volunteer), and the general location. The title should give enough detail to catch the Job Seeker’s attention as they view of the results of their search. Be sure to put lots of keywords in the summary as that will help the Job Seeker find your RFP. You may list your organization and contact information in the summary, but we suggest you include it in the RFP as well.
• Post an RFP to receive a grant
On this site, an RFP to receive a grant is open-ended. In other words, you don’t know who will be looking at your request. Grantmakers, and other people who want to help nonprofits, search the site for organizations that work in their area of interest. Keep this in mind when you post this type of RFP and choose a title which will stand out in a list. And be sure to use keywords in the summary which will help the Grantmaker find your RFP.
• Post an RFP offering a grant to eligible nonprofits
An RFP offering a grant to eligible nonprofits can only be posted by a nonprofit. And the same advice applies – use keywords and a catchy title. The search function for this type of RFP is duplicated in the Nonprofit section of the website because a Grantmaker can also be registered as Nonprofit.
RFP DATA – Here you will fill in a Title and RFP Summary. Be sure to keep the title short and to the point. The summary should describe what you’re looking for with as many keywords as possible because this is the text which is searched. If you are creating an RFP for Goods or Services, remember to not mention any contact information in the title or summary or the RFP will be flagged. This is just a minor point and will not prevent your RFP from being listed. It will be reviewed first, however. If you are posting any other type of RFP, feel free to include contact and organization information.
RFP CONTENTS – Next you are asked to choose if you will upload an existing .pdf file or if you would prefer to create your content online by typing directly into the form or cutting and pasting your text from another file. If you choose the latter, a .pdf file will be created for you as all RFPs are .pdf files when they are downloaded.
RFP Status – This is where you tell us when you want your RFP posted by giving a deadline and an Active or Inactive status. The deadline date is the last day on which your RFP will appear in the search results and creates the status of Archived when an RFP is withdrawn on that date. If at any time you need to withdraw it temporarily, change the Status to Inactive.
We suggest that you allow plenty of time for people to find your listing, i.e. a minimum of 2 weeks. We also suggest that you choose a Deadline that is a minimum of a day before your organization’s actual deadline for receipt of bids. Postings are automatically archived at midnight at the end of the Deadline Date day. You can extend or move up the Deadline Date by Editing the RFP. If you wish to repost an RFP that has been archived for some time, we suggest that you change the title slightly to signal businesses that it is a re-posting.
RFPs appear in the Search Results within the first 24 hours. When you begin to post an RFP, the Status is 'Active' by default. If you need to suspend the posting process, you can set the Status to 'Inactive'. This will allow you to come back later to finish the posting if needed or edit the RFP.
In the rare event that your posting does not appear, just use the Contact Us feature and Customer Care Representatives will be able to help you within 24 hours.